Modules 7-10

States of ConsciousnessSleep & Dreams

HypnosisDrugs & Consciousness

What is Consciousness?

• Awareness of self and environment

• Cognitive Neuroscience

• MRI can detect activity- even if there is no outward appearance of of conscious awareness

• Dual Processing –

• High Road Processing – conscious & deliberate

• Low Road Processing - unconscious/automatic

• “Autopilot” especially when doing routine tasks

Selective Attention

• BE THERE! The FISH! Philosophy (Book /Website / Documentary)

• Distracted Driving – your mind is in one place at a time!

• Cocktail Party Effect – your ability to listen to one person in a noisy room.

• Eye blinks and attention… there is a good book about this: Blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Inattentional Blindness(gorilla amid the ball passers & pickpockets)

Change Blindness(after visual interruption, person/items change)

Choice Blindness(taste testing)

So what if you don’t get enough sleep?

It is a BIG DEAL! If you don’t get enough sleep, it can cause or worsen mental and physical

health problems.

Need some ZZZZZs?

• College and University age students are especially sleep deprived.

• Sleep Debt cannot be made up easily.

• Sleep loss is a predictor of depression.

• Consequences: difficulty studying, diminished productivity, tendency to make mistakes, irritability, fatigue

• Lack of sleep can make you fatter. Increases hunger hormone and decreases hunger-depressing hormone.

• Increases cortisol – stress hormone

• Can suppress immune cells

• Driver fatigue (DANGEROUS!)

• Sleep apnea – host of health effects

Dreams

• Hallucinations of the sleeping mind

• Many theories…

• Functions of Dreams• Satisfy our own wishes• File away memories• Develop & preserve neural pathways• Make sense of neural static• Reflect cognitive development

• Dreams change as you mature -

Hypnosis

• Can you just hit “replay”?• Nope. We don’t record everything/can’t

retrieve everything we do record.

• Can we make people do what we want? • (against their will) - probably not

• Pain relief??? • Yep. Hypnosis can inhibit pain-related

brain activity.

Module 10

Drugs & Consciousness

Tolerance – neuroadaption – to experience the same effect, more of the substance is needed.

Addiction – person craves and uses substance despite adverse consequences

Withdrawal – side effects from substance absence

Physical dependence vs. psychological dependence…

Types of drugs:Depressants –

AlcoholSlow Neural ProcessingMemory ProblemsReduces self-awareness/self-controlExpectancy Effects – Study from RutgersBarbituatesTranquilizersCan impair judgment/memoryLethal if taken with alcoholOpiatesMorphine/heroinBrain stops producing endorphinsMethadone - substitute

Stimulants – Amphetamines(Caffeine/Nicotine/Cocaine/Methamphetamine/Ecstasy)

Nicotine – one of the most addictive substancesCocaine – fast high to crash – chasing the high – placebo had similar

effect for users. Meth – triggers brain to release dopamine – energy & good mood.

Overtime, reduces dopamine baseline – NEED the high!Ecstasy – stimulant AND Hallucinogen – triggers dopamine release

as well as serotonin – blocks reuptake of serotonin so the high lasts longer – dehydrates you/temp & BP go up – andyou can die. Bummer!

Hallucinogens – Hey did you see that?

LSD – Oops, did I just ingest that? Stream ofconsciousness – Emotional response is not predictable. Could be great – could be panic!

Link to near-death experiences?

Marijuana – THC – mild hallucinogenicTakes longer to exit system than alcoholUser experience variesMemory can be impacted

Brain shrinkage/fetal development*summary on p. 125

Drug Use and Abuse

Biological Influences

Psychological Influences

Social-Cultural Influences